Main stems stout, woody, creeping and rooting, up to 1m. long; branches ascending, stout, c. 5-10 cm. long, pilose. Lvs 5-10 cm. or more long, petioles silky-pilose, lflts 11-15. Stipules obliquely lanceolate, c. 6-8 mm. long, 3-4-fid. Upper lflts 12-15 mm. long, elliptic to obovate-oblong, subsessile, subserrate-crenate, vivid dark green and glab. above, pale below and pilose on veins; terminal lflt on petiolule c. 3 mm. long. Scapes c. 10 cm. long, stout, with or without one or more pairs of bracts. Heads, including spines, c. 3·5 cm. diam. sts smaller; bractlets linear, c. 4 mm. long. Cupules obconic, tetragonous, pilose, c. 3-4 mm. long. Spines c. 1 cm. long, occ. shorter, dark purple. Sepals lanceolate to broad-lanceolate, ± pilose below. Stamens 2, anthers white, stigma plumose.

n = 21

Stoloniferous perennial; prostrate stems 1.5-2 mm diam., < 1.5 m long; erect stems 1-2 mm diam., < 15 cm long or longer when scrambling on supporting vegetation. Lvs 2-11 cm long; stipules entire to 5-fid; leaflets 9-15, oblong, 4-17 × 2-10 mm, 8-15-toothed, bright, shining green (rachis often red) and glabrous or sparsely hairy on upper surface, glaucescent and sparsely or densely hairy on veins and margins on lower surface; teeth appearing crenate because of recurved margins. Scape 10-15 cm long, pilose; capitulum c. 9 mm diam. at flowering, < 3.5 cm diam. (including spines) at fruiting; florets c. 80-100-(120); sepals 4; stamens usually 2, rarely 3; anthers white; style 1, white; achene 1. Fr. obconic, c. 4 × 1.7 mm, hairy; spines 4, red, 7.5-12 mm long, barbed, occasionally with stunted subsidiary spines on side of fr.